Intresting info from Transperancy International

BRUSSELS: Indian, Chinese and Russian exporters pay bribes more often than companies from other countries, according to a survey released Wednesday that ranked Italian businesses as the most inclined to pay bribes among European Union countries.

The findings, covering 30 leading exporting countries, were released by Transparency International, a nongovernmental monitoring group. The survey found that companies from Switzerland, Sweden, Australia, Austria and Canada bribed the least to win foreign business. Britain ranked 6th; Germany 7th; the United States 9th, along with Belgium; and Japan, 11th.

arrrr Bribe Me

What makes this intresting is countries with cultures that accept bribary happen to bribe more often then those that don't.....

Which should shock no one.

While I am tinkering and Updating

Lets listen to what Ben Bernanke Has to say

"Reform of our unsustainable entitlement programs" should be a priority, he said in prepared remarks to the Economics Club of Washington. "The imperative to undertake reform earlier rather than later is great," Bernanke added.

It marked the Fed chief's most extensive comments to date on the challenges facing the United States with the looming retirement of 78 million baby boomers.

In his remarks, Bernanke did not offer Congress and the Bush administration recommendations on how the massive entitlement programs should be changed. Efforts by the administration to overhaul the Social Security program _ once a centerpiece of President Bush's second-term agenda _ sputtered last year, meeting resistance from Republicans and Democrats alike.

As the population ages, the nation will have to choose among higher taxes, less non-entitlement spending by the government, a reduction in spending on entitlement programs, a sharply higher budget deficit or some combination thereof, Bernanke said.

Government spending on Social Security and Medicare alone will increase from about 7 percent of the total size of the U.S. economy to almost 13 percent by 2030 and to more than 15 percent by 2050, he said.

The Chairman of the Fed's big claim to fame is on how the US trade deficit doesn't matter because we can pay for it.

If he is telling us we can't pay for our social security and welfare state... WORRY

Hmmm this is intresting

Reporters are always awesome when they tell you information inadvertantly

-observe-

The new measures took effect immediately upon being issued by the state Xinhua News Agency. The regulations give Xinhua broad authority over foreign news agencies, requiring them to distribute stories, photos and other services solely through Xinhua or entities authorized by Xinhua.

The rules would affect The Associated Press, Reuters and other foreign news agencies seeking wider access to the rapidly expanding Chinese market. It was unclear how other news organizations would be affected.

So China is Censoring things, so what I bet you say. But then you would not have learned the most important rule of Al-Press

the meat is always later in the article

Under a decade-old set of regulations, foreign news agencies were allowed limited distribution of financial data and other information — deals that the new rules appear to rule out

hmmm Financial Data

President
Hu Jintao's leadership has sought to rein in state-controlled media that have strayed from party dictates in search of profits and market share. Journalists and editors have been fired and arrested.

Hmmmm

As part of its new powers, Xinhua also will police the distribution of news in the mainland by agencies from Hong Kong, a former British colony now ruled by China but that operates under separate laws and with a free press. It also affects agencies in Taiwan, which Beijing claims but does not control.

Under the rules, any reports that disrupt "China's economic and social order or undermine China's social stability" will be banned as will news that undermines the country's "national unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity," Xinhua said.

hmmmmm

Other news banned by the rules includes information that may "endanger China's national security, reputation and interests," violate "China's religious policies or preach 'evil cults' or superstition," or "incite hatred and discrimination among ethnic groups" or undermine their unity.

Also forbidden is "other content banned by Chinese laws and administrative regulations," it said.

From an older post I found this gem

In 2003, a boom year, their median rate of return on assets was a measly 1.5 percent. More than 35 percent of state enterprises lose money and 1 in 6 has more debts than assets. China is the only country in history to have simultaneously achieved record economic growth and a record number of nonperforming bank loans.

In other words..... Their is bad economic news in China. Foriegn press not only can't report it internally in china this deal also effects their ability to get it internally from china and express it to the outside world.

I will see if when I get home I can dig up some of my other Red Dragon related posts

First lets laugh at the EURO

The Brussel's Journey continues their very low workload job of kicking the EU while it's down.

oaquin Almunia, the EU’s monetary affairs commissioner, who “told a group of City bankers and fund managers that the markets were ‘not properly pricing the risk’ of Italian sovereign debt. He also raised concerns about Greek debt. […] The spread between German and Italian 10-year bonds has already jumped from 20 to 31 basis points in recent days as rising global interest rates make investors more sensitive to risk. […] Mr Almunia said the spreads may widen further to reflect the default risk in Italy, which has the world’s third biggest stock of public debt after Japan and the United States.”

So whenever you hear moonbats talking about Iran or other states selling their oil in Euro's...

just snicker a lot